Secrets
by Cliara Aedai
Summary: Dr. Spencer Reid has many secrets that he will not share, but when one of these secrets is in trouble and Reid's life is at risk, will it be time to let in those who he can trust? Or will he hold his silence and suffer the concequences?
1. Prologue

**A/N**** Hey everyone, so I just thought I would attempt something and see if anyone liked it. I will post a real chapter along with this one but I won't update if nobody likes them. And you know how to let me know if you like it? Reviews! And if anyone has a particular name for the unsub/s let me know!**

**Disclaimer: **** Don't own criminal minds or its characters.**

**Prologue**

Through the blue binoculars one could see an awkward looking young man locking up his wooden front door and descending down the many steps that lead to the road. He was dressed in his work clothes, which were far from modern, but looked neat and clean all the same. He always wore the perfectly fitted pants with a plain shirt and vest over the top, along with fancy but plain shoes and, of course, socks. To someone who did not know the man, he looked rather averagely dressed, despite the unusual clothing choice, but the person who watched him from their window knew that everyday he wore odd socks as a sign of luck. The onlooker also knew that Dr. Spencer Reid hid a small gun in his carry bag, and he also knew that the young man was very cautious, overly cautious even. Yes, this Dr. Reid of the FBI was a unique one with an interesting background to his life, and he had many secrets that no one knew. Except for the onlooker himself, of course. These were the secrets that made the man so interesting and important to the onlooker, these were the secrets that concerned so many people close to him. The man spying knew that Dr. Reid also intended to keep these secrets private, but this was not a plan that agreed with the hidden man's own. With a content and victorious sigh, he put the binoculars away and left the young FBI agent to the rest of his morning, without any other interruptions from him. For today, at least.


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N ****Hey guys, just an introductory chapter to set the scene. Hope you like! I also apologise for any spelling mistakes, I have checked but you never know if I have missed anything. Thanks.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything of Criminal minds. Drat.**

Dr. Spencer Reid flung open the doors to the BAU office very ungracefully, almost spilling his large coffee in the process. He quickly righted himself and checked to see if there was anybody watching, which thankfully, there wasn't. Hurrying over to his desk, the young agent put down what he was carrying and sat down, attempting to calm himself after his quick shock just moments ago. He took a sip of his sweet beverage and sighed happily at the warmth as it spread through him. Pushing everything that was insignificant to the back of his detailed mind, he set upon the stack of paperwork before him. Looking at the large pile, he realised that Morgan had placed some of his own in the pile. Smirking to himself, Reid opened the first file and began reading at an incredibly impressive rate.

Agent Derek Morgan strolled through the corridor of his workplace calmly and confidently, smiling at everyone and even joking with the mail man. He loved his job and the opportunities it gave him to spend time with different people. He also loved the power it gave him, although he would never abuse it. That was not the sort of person Morgan was, he was not a cheater or a liar. Well, generally he didn't lie, but of course there were exceptions. Like the situation he found himself in only hours before when his youngest sister emailed him a photo of her new haircut, asking him if he liked it. Frankly, Morgan hated the cut; it made her look too old and mature. But it was clear that she loved it so he replied with 'Wow, who is that beautiful girl staring at me? Oh wait, it's my sister!' As the agent walked towards his desk he noticed his co-worker, Reid, trip over his feet and almost spill his far too sweet coffee as he entered the doorway. The kid was clumsy and awkward, but Morgan would never doubt his abilities ever again. It was clear this kid was a strong person, even though that was not what one would think at a first glance.

"Hey kid, enjoy your trip?" Morgan joked referring to the fall he had just witnessed.

"Be quiet Morgan, if I were you I would be nice to the guy who is doing half of your paper work!" Reid retorted harshly even though he was blushing furiously.

"Oh, I apologise great one! Let me know if there is anything I can possibly do to help you, my saviour, my hero, my idol, my-"

"Morgan!" Reid interrupted "Go away and let me concentrate!"

"Right you are kid" Morgan laughed as he headed towards Agent Emily Prentiss who had just entered alongside Agent Dave Rossi and Technical Analysis Penelope Garcia.

"How's things guys?" Morgan said as he reached them, wearing a goofy grin. The four of them continued through the room deep in conversation.

Agent Aaron Hotchner sat in his office concentrating on an email he had been sent by his boss, Strauss. Apparently she was not pleased with how the team had handled a recent case, as they had lost one of the unsubs during a raid. His boss thought this could have been avoided if his team had handled the situation properly. Hotch was attempting to explain in calm language that his team did act appropriately and that she was being unjust, but he was a bit stuck with his words. Just as he was about to give up and return to the email later in the morning, his media liaison Jennifer Jereau entered the small room with a grim look on her face. She was dressed neatly and nicely for work, and looked gentle and innocent. Of course, Hotch and the rest of his team knew that this was not the case. In a dangerous situation, JJ had proved to be very good in the field and everyone trusted her completely. She was a valuable asset to the team, and Hotch was proud to say so.

"Have we got another case?" Hotch asked, matter-of-factly.

"Yes, and it is a particularly sad one. I think we should head out as soon as possible."

"Of course," Hotch replied, trusting her judgment. "where are we heading to?"

"Oregon, I'll gather the team and we'll start briefing in 5"

JJ walked over to Prentiss, Morgan, Rossi and Garcia who were having a massive conversation about what was better: cats or dogs. JJ shook her head, these people were part of the FBI and had seen many things that some couldn't even imagine and they were arguing over something as trivial as cats and dogs. Seeing her approaching, their conversation died instantly and all their faces showed mirrored looks of expectation and dread.

"We are heading to Oregon, be ready for briefing in 5" JJ said as she glanced at them all. She thought it unfair that such nice people had to see such horrible things, but as she often reasoned with herself, someone had to do it, and her team was the best of the best. And at least they had each other, they all had someone who could relate and comfort them whether it be through words or mere presence. She turned her back on her friends as they got up ready to work, and walked towards the youngest agent who was concentrating intently on the paperwork before him.

"Spence, we have a case, can you head to the briefing please?" JJ asked in a soft tone as to not startle him.

"Of course JJ" Reid replied turning in his chair and picking up his carry bag. "Is it a bad one?" He asked wearily.

JJ hesitated, unsure for a moment how to answer. "We have seen worse." She said as she headed back to the rest of the team who were gathered and waiting for the two of them. As she entered the room she had another sense of deja vû. The amount of times she had to brief the team on the horrors of this world was sad, and she wished it would happen less often. Unfortunately, she knew this wish would never be granted, as was the way of the world.

Reid entered the room last and stopped for a moment to look at all the faces before him. The faces of his BAU family. And in some ways, the faces of his lifeline.


	3. Chapter 2

**A/N ****Thanks to everyone who is reading this, it means a lot! I have had around 670 hits and 4 reviews, which is fantastic! Heaps of people have also marked my story too, which makes me so happy! I have also named a character after my first reviewer, Clary. Thanks to those who reviewed: I will be including all of your pen names next chapter in author's note. Hope you enjoy this chapter.**

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own Criminal Minds or its characters.**

"OK, so we are heading to Oregon to investigate a series of murders involving people of all ages with minor and possible consequential links. Only the most recent victim was murdered in Oregon, the rest are spread through out the country over a time period of three months. We have four victims, and one missing" JJ began, addressing her team with piercing eyes. As she began describing the victims the rest of the team looked down at their files and followed with eyebrows scrunched into their forehead.

"We have Allan Earnshaw, 32, real estate agent for 7 years. Father of two, married, middle income. Caucasian, brown short hair, and no tattoos or any other distinguishing body marks. Found dead by a local river in Virginia, signs of starvation, cause of death being a bullet to the head. Discovered by a police officer. Local police have cleared him from suspicion and have no leads.

Emma O'Connor" JJ paused at this, staring at the young girl pictured on the screen. She looked incredibly vulnerable, and it was obvious to anyone that she had possibly taken the wrong turn down life lane. It took all her effort to pull away and focus her attention on the job at hand."She was 24, a bar attendant also in Virginia. She was pregnant with her first child, married for 3 years. She was Caucasian, long red hair and had a small tattoo of a butterfly on her left foot. Also found by a river in Virginia although a different one to the previous victim. Signs of starvation, cause of death being bullet to head. Discovered by a small boy playing with his older cousin. Local police have no suspects.

Jeffery McPherson, 43, owner of a small finance business. Not married, no children. Italian, 6 foot tall, American citizen for 9 years. No distinguishing body marks. Like the previous victims he was killed by a bullet to the head and had signs of extreme starvation. Found in Seattle near a flooded tree area by a local. Police have two suspects, both relatives of the man.

Last found victim was Mark Piles, 37. Unemployed, one child taken away by the state, has a young girlfriend. Caucasian, short, has blond hair. Previous criminal record but nothing serious. Tattoos covering his body including snakes and names. Found in Florida, by a lake, signs of starvation, and once again, killed by a bullet to the head. " JJ paused to look at the other people on her team. They stared at her waiting for more information, as they all knew that at the moment they had almost nothing to work with.

"When I first looked at this case I was sceptical that they were linked, as I am sure you are at the moment. But with each case, the victim has been shaved of their head hair and had LIAR written over their bald scalps. I believe this is the unsub's mark, and the fact that he has captured another victim has me positive that these murders will not stop unless we stop him or her."

JJ looked back at the screen behind her as she began to explain the most recent victim kidnapped. She knew they had to work fast if they wanted to have any chance of saving her, so time was of the essence.

"The latest victim is Clary Stiles-" JJ was interrupted by a loud spluttering noise and she looked over to see Reid choking on his coffee with Morgan trying to help. She was completely and utterly confused with the reaction, and stood there with her mouth slightly a gape. Quickly glancing at the other people in the room, she saw her confused expression mirrored on every face.

Reid, however, was feeling things far stronger than confusion. He was feeling afraid, wary, shock, and complete horror at both the name and the picture of the missing girl. Her name was Clary Stiles, 21. She had blond, wavy hair down to the bottom of her ribcage, piercing brown eyes, and wore glasses. She was incredibly intelligent but shy, never wanting for there to be a fuss. She had no criminal record or social life, as far as Reid knew, other than from himself. She was a banker at Commonwealth bank, had no children and no relationships. Her favourite colour was purple, favourite food was sushi, and even had a pet pigeon called Sammi. Her father's name is Richard Stiles, mother's name is Diana Reid and she has a half brother, called Spencer.

Jumping up from his seat and ignoring his team's exclamations and worries, Reid raced to the bathroom stumbling over his feet in his hurry, where he promptly emptied his stomach of his breakfast into the toilet basin. Reid felt hot, and completely unable to focus on his surroundings. The walls were giving him a headache if he looked at them, and the picture on the bathroom door wouldn't stay still. The heat was rushing to his ears, and no matter how hard he tried to calm himself, the image of his missing half sister kept flooding into his mind, taunting him. This couldn't be happening, this wasn't meant to happen. How did this happen? Reid could feel the dizziness in his head begin to overcome him, and the last rational thought he had was 'why did this happen to her?' before he gave in and collapsed against the cool bathroom tiles.

Back in the briefing room, Morgan was staring after the young agent completely unsure of what to do next. There were very few times when Morgan was unsure of himself, but this was one of those times. JJ was looking enquiringly at Morgan hoping for some answers, while Garcia looked close to tears at her young friend's reaction to the unknown woman on the screen. She was so confused. Maybe Clary was a friend of Reid's? Or maybe they were dating? Garcia was sure that Reid's only family was Diana, his schizophrenic mother, so what had made Reid so upset? Hotch stood up after a moment, deciding to get some explanation and followed in the direction Reid had run off in. Morgan wanted to go and see too, so he followed silently and slowly behind the heavy footsteps of Hotch. Hotch stopped in front of the clean and modern looking bathroom, expecting and almost dreading to hear what the young man was going through, but the deadly silence frightened him even more. Stopping to think for a moment, Hotch considered his options. He could leave Reid alone and give him his privacy and space to sort his emotions out. But then again, Reid may need some comfort and there was also the minimal chance that he was hurt or seriously ill. Feeling that the second option outweighed the first, Hotch opened the door to the bathroom of which only one of the three toilet doors was partly closed.

"Reid?" Hotch spoke softly into the silence. He pushed open the door and gasped at the shocking sight before him.

"Morgan!" Hotch yelled to the agent who he knew had been following him. "Morgan!" Right on cue, Morgan barged in with his gun drawn, fully expecting a threat. But what he saw shocked him even more, so much in fact, that he stumbled a bit before regaining his composure.

For beneath Hotch's worried gaze lay Reid, unconscious and sprawled in his own sweat, fear clearly etched on his face.


	4. Chapter 3

**A/N** **Thanks if you reviewed, it made me so happy! I have had 1,620 hits and 12 reviews. Thanks to raramae47, pottyandweezlbe89, lightinshadow, WriterJosi, Sue1313, Anonymous, shy8629,Ipearson and pipinheart. My goal is 18 reviews before I post the next chapter on Wednesday or Thursday. Thanks! P.S I am sorry these chapters are so short, when we get into the action, they will be longer.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own criminal minds**

The first thing Reid heard was the voices. In any normal situation this would scare him, hearing voices but not being able to see where they came from. But even in his hazy state, Reid recognised the voices as those of his BAU team, and it was clear they were worried. But Reid knew that being worried only took up time, and their time to find Clary was little and precious. It could not be wasted, and Reid knew that to stop them from worrying, all he had to do was get up. Just open his eyes and stand up without falling over. But it was easier said than done, as Reid couldn't even feel anything at the moment. Concentrating as hard as he possibly could, Reid tried to figure out where he was. He could feel a cold floor, it was hard and uncomfortable, and... wet? Why was the floor wet? After thinking for another moment, Reid remembered that he was in the bathroom, but that still didn't explain why it was wet. Oh well, he had to work on priorities. Priority number 1, open eyes. And so Reid tried to open his eyes, but they were so heavy and dull. He had never thought it would be so hard to wake up. After what felt like hours but was probably only a few moments, Reid's eyes flickered and then stared at the bright ceiling. He was sure he could see a face, but his eyes wouldn't focus on anything, so he dismissed it as a shadow. He couldn't concentrate on anything or even make sense of any of it. It hurt his head and he wanted to give in. But Hotch's strong and commanding voice rang through his ears, and he concentrated on it with all of his might. And Reid found that as the voices became clearer and made more sense, so did his vision. His eyes finally stopped their wild blinking, and Reid saw the sight before him. His BAU team where all crowded in the tiny bathroom cell with him. And they looked worried, even more worried than Reid could have ever imagined. Maybe priority number 1 wasn't such a good idea...

"Reid? Are you with us now Reid? I need you to let me know you understand me and then tell me what happened." Hotch's voice came from directly above him. His tone was commanding but gentle, and Reid didn't dare defy that voice.

"...space... please..." Reid croaked, realising how little space he had to breathe in. All at once the team began moving back, relieved at Reid's response, but scared all the same. Only Morgan and Hotch stayed with him, of which he was oddly grateful for. While he needed space, Reid also longed for some company. Time to work on priority number 2: Stand up.

"Reid?" Morgan inquired as his young friend started struggling and getting himself in an awkward position. "Reid, are you ok man?"

"Fine... standing up..." He gasped as his feet finally were flat on the ground. "Yes!" he whispered in delight, joyful at his small triumph. While feelings of joy cursed through Reid as he finally made it to his feet, feelings of concern flooded through Hotch because of how shaky he looked.

"Reid, are you ok?" He asked once again, as his agent leaned heavily against the wall.

"I am fine... just thirsty" He replied, and not two seconds later Garcia had a cup of water in front of him. He stared at her in amazement.

"How-" he began to ask before she cut him off.

"Don't speak, just drink" She said quickly and he complied, with no resistance. The cold water felt good in his mouth, and gave him instant relief and energy. Priority number 2 complete.

"Thanks" he said to Garcia, as he looked around at the faces staring at him. He knew it was only a matter of time before they asked him what happened, and they wouldn't leave without an answer. But Reid knew that he couldn't tell them of his relation to Clary, or they would pull him off the case because they would be afraid he would put his heart before his head. And they were right, if the situation arose Reid would put Clary's life before his own, because he loved her. He would never be able to live with himself if she was hurt or killed because of him.

"Reid, what happened?" Hotch asked cautiously. Reid sighed internally, the inevitable had already arrived.

"Nothing Hotch, I just ate some bad eggs with breakfast this morning, and have been feeling off since. Coffee went down the wrong way in the briefing, and it upset my stomach. I am fine now though, they seem to be out of my system now." He lied, trying to believe the answer himself. The profilers stared at him, and Morgan didn't seem happy about his answer. He didn't say anything though, which was a mark of their friendship.

"Are you sure you feel ok, because if not you have plenty of sick leave. We can handle this case without you if need be." Hotch continued calmly, even though he knew there was more to Reid's story.

"No!" Reid said, startling everyone. "I mean, um, I am fine to work. Can we, I mean, can we get back to the case?" He stuttered, earning him more worried looks. Seeing that nobody looked like they were about to move, he lead the way out the doors and in the direction he had previously run from. Reid had to keep his calm face if he were to work on this case. They already knew something was wrong, so Reid had to continue like nothing had happened. 'Priority number 3, don't let the team discover my secret.' He said in his head. This was going to be a long day.


	5. Chapter 4

**A/N**** Just want to thank you all for reading this! As soon as the holidays arrive, this will be updated far more regularly. This chapter is a bit of a space filler, and the next one will be too. But after that, things are sure to get more exciting! Please review, I am hoping for 5 more reviews for this chapter.**

**Disclaimer**** I do not own Criminal Minds or any of its characters.**

Reid walked in the room confidently, and would fool anyone with the ludicrous statement that he was ok. But this was a team of profilers, and it was obvious to first Rossi and then Prentiss that Reid was most definitely not ok. His legs shook ever so slightly as he stepped, and his hands scratched the edge of his legs nervously. He was looking in every direction, and avoiding eye contact at all costs. He also stood straighter than usual, and his face looked unnaturally calm, like it was plastered on his head. No, he was most definitely not ok.

Hotch and Morgan walked in silently after, and gave everyone looks that suggested not to bring up the possibly uncomfortable subject. JJ looked up from her profile extremely worriedly, but after meeting Hotch's gaze, continued on with the briefing, less calm than before even though her previous state had been one of immense fright and dread.

"Well, yes. Let's see... Ok, so we are heading to Oregon to try and find the killer and ultimately save Clary Stiles from a similar fate to the other victims. We will be taking over from the local police, they do not wish to work alongside us. We will be setting up in the community hall, I know it isn't luxurious but it was the best they would offer." She said, and then after a moment of thought added to Reid's utter embarrassment "And I hope you feel better soon Reid". The silence that followed was awkward, and Reid's face shone brighter that Rudolph's nose.

"Wheels up in 20" Was the final thing that was said before the team left to get ready individually.

18 minutes and 57 seconds later, Reid sat down on the overly-comfortable jet couches and waited impatiently for the rest of the team to board. He was an utter mess, and he knew it. Between the shock of finding out his sister had been kidnapped by a serial killer, the stress of keeping it from his friends and at the same time trying to get some ideas as to who the unsub was, Reid's mind was working overtime and not coping. Any other time, Reid would have left to go and release his feelings freely in the form of tears, but he could not afford to waste time now. Clary's life depended on it, and it was these thoughts that distracted Reid from the fact that the rest of the BAU had just boarded the jet and were staring at him suspiciously. He didn't notice JJ put his case file on his lap, he didn't notice Morgan sit down beside him, and he certainly did not notice that Hotch had just made him a cup of tea instead of coffee. He did, however, notice when Morgan put his hand on his shoulder, for the shock of it sent him jumping off his seat in surprise, consequently sending his file papers flying and spilling the tea all over his pants.

"Damn it!" Reid squeaked, trying desperately to wipe the tea off, and failing miserably. He sighed before remembering the unexpected presence of the rest of the BAU, and slowly turned his head to see them all staring at him with concerned expressions. He was about to say something to change the subject, when Morgan's laugh rang through the silence.

"What?" Reid demanded, blushing furiously. "Why are you laughing?"

"Oh, c'mon kid! That was hilarious! I can't be that frightening can I?" Morgan retorted with a smile, before pulling a face similar to that of the grinch.

"Are you kidding me? Remember that time I had to pick you up at 3 in the morning to go to a briefing for that case in Minnesota? I was seriously considering whether you were indeed Morgan or an alien from space trying to break into my warm car!" He exclaimed while wiping the rest of the tea from his pants, and a small smile broke through his careful mask. Morgan beamed at the younger agent.

"Now that's the Reid we all know, love and sometimes get annoyed with!"

Oregon was misty when the team arrived, suiting Reid's mood perfectly. They all met the local police out the front of their hotel after promptly settling in. A tall and well built man introduced himself as Officer Hascullion, and Reid frowned at the man's joyful attitude as he shook his hand.

"Welcome to Oregon!" Hascullion stated with a bright smile. It was obvious to the whole team that this man was excited to work with the high profile FBI team, but they each held a similar distaste at the nerve of the man.

"I'm SSA Hotchner, and these are Agents Rossi, Prentiss, Reid, JJ and Morgan. It is nice to know you are happy to work with us but please keep in mind this is a murder investigation and not a tour or entertainment activity." Hotch finished curtly, earning a small smile from Prentiss and sudden respect from his fellow workers.

"Of course" Hascullion replied, somewhat embarrassed, but still honoured to be in their presence. "Now where shall we start?"

Hotch repressed a sigh at the man who was obviously not used to the sort of professional attitude displayed by the team. Deciding now was not the time for a lecture he began slowly.

"My team and I will need somewhere to work, any evidence already acquired, a board, internet and mobile access along with the full co-operation of all of your men. Is this possible?"

"Of course, of course! Right this way please!"

Forty minutes later, the incompetent and annoying Hascullion was finally moving onto the evidence and crime scenes, after taking far too long with the other trivial comforts.

"So here is all the evidence from the crime scenes in Seattle, Virginia and Florida. There was no DNA evidence found, no tracks, and no clues as to who the murderer might be. Here is the GPS coordinates regarding where the latest vic was kidnapped from. Good luck guys, call if you need us!" And with that, the annoyingly cheery officer left.

"Thank goodness" JJ sighed "I thought he would never leave!"

"Agreed, now let us start with reviewing the case. Morgan and Reid, you head to the kidnap scene, JJ and Prentiss, you start looking into the victims. Rossi and I will look at the evidence. Meet back here in 2 hours exactly. Any questions?" Silence met Hotch's question.

"Good, now get to it."


	6. Chapter 5

**A/N Ok! ****So I was excited after beginning to write again that I wrote this as soon as I could! I hope you like it, and look forward to the next chapter. Please review, your comments make me so happy!**

**Disclaimer: ****I do not own Criminal Minds or any of it's characters**

The two men sat inside the small, borrowed, green Ford as they drove towards the abduction sight in Oregon. They had needed a spare car quickly in order to get the site as soon as possible, and Officer Hascullion had only this one. So inside they were squished, attempting not to gag from the horrendous smell. The road they were on had many turns, and called for constant attention from the driver, as any wrong move could send the vehicle over the edge and into a large forest of rocks, trees and dangerous animals. But beside the obvious dangers, the sight was beautiful. If they weren't here on a case, Morgan was sure that he would be thoroughly enjoying the scenery on their drive, but the case they were here on was too serious for beauty and Morgan had living proof right next to him. For in the passenger seat of the Ford sat Reid, dismal and shaky as ever, quite clearly affected emotionally from their present case.

"Man, you sure you are ok? You haven't been yourself this entire trip. I know this case is a bad one, but you normally handle them better than this." Morgan asked his friend sitting to the right of him. Even though his eyes were trained on the road, Morgan could still see the uneasiness in the young doctors eyes before he answered, as if planning his words carefully.

"Course I am fine." Reid curtly replied, promptly staring back out the window at the trees, and yet not taking in any of it at all. He was determined to spend the rest of the trip in silence.

This plan would have worked too, for Morgan had seemed to give up on the young doctor for the time being, and there was no topic of conversation that arised, begging to be spoken of. But less than five minutes from their destination, and just before Morgan was about to round one of the final bends, a crazy motor driver sped in front of Reid and Morgan's car, spinning wildly and trying to edge their car off the road completely. He came out of no where, startling both agents and putting them on high alert immediately.

"What the heck!" Morgan yelled, desperately trying to control the car and not run over the hooded motorist. An accident would certainly be unwelcome now. Reid was holding on for dear life, shaking but too shocked to speak as he recognised the boots on the motorist. Hoping he was easily mistaken, Reid attempted to reassure himself, but the orange eagle with diamante studs was etched clearly in his mind from some other encounter. They swerved dangerously to the right of the road, breaking Reid out of his memories, wheels screeching loudly as the motorist moved in once again. But this time Morgan wouldn't have it, he would not be pushed around and let this man risk his own and Reid's life.

"Stupid motorist" he muttered under his breath, and then in one rash, adrenaline caused moved, he turned straight to the motorist and sped up, foot slamming on the accelerator.

"Morgan, you idiot, slow down!" Reid screamed at the top of his lungs, but it did no good, Morgan had his eyes set on running over the idiot, and nothing was going to stop him. The other cars on the road had slowed down by now and were honking loudly, but Reid and Morgan did not notice. Morgan was too concentrated on the raving lunatic, and Reid was terrified of crashing, which was a distinct possibility, along with the possible identity of the man. With one final, sloppy turn, the motorist headed away in the opposite direction, obviously accepting his failure to run the agents off the road. But Morgan was going too fast to slow down quickly now, and was about to face the consequences.

"Ok, so victim number one: what do we know about him?" Prentiss asked after two hours of sorting through the victim's life.

"Well" JJ began, writing on the board as she went. "We know his name is Allan Earnshaw. Grew up in a stable environment, had an eminent father, a loving mother. They lived in a nice home, Allan had friends. Good marks in school. It doesn't look like he ever got into the darker side of things, simply married after college and had two children. He is Caucasian, short brown hair, and no tattoos. Allan is known to have donated a fair amount of money to Poverty Organisations. He was really just a generous, kind father and happy man of society."

With a sigh, JJ lowered her marker and looked at Prentiss.

"Why is this world so cruel? He did nothing wrong, and now two little kids will grow up without a father."

"I know, JJ, it isn't fair. All we can do is our best and catch this creep before anyone else is killed."

And so the two female agents continued on for another hour, until they were about to start on Clary Stiles' profile. Just as they pinned up her photo, Hotch walked into the room they were working in and told them to have a break so that they could look at the most important victim later, with refreshed eyes and brains. They heartedly agreed and walked out of the room without another glance. They would return, more determined than ever to find this killer, but for now, they needed to listen to their humanly needs and rest.

"Where the hell did he go?" Morgan shouted, desperately gripping onto the wheel and trying to control the wild movements. He slammed his foot on the breaks, but the effect was less than satisfactory, with the breaks instantly locking from the age of the car.

"Morgan, left, turn left!" Reid yelled at his friend, but it was too late, a massive tree was already front of them and there was little they could do to stop the impending crash. Reid lifted his hands to shield his head...


	7. Chapter 6

**A/N ****Alright, so it's the holidays and I have more spare time to write more. So I am really sorry that this has taken so long, but it has surprised me how popular it still is even though I haven't updated in literally ages. Please keep in mind that I do this for fun and enjoyment, I don't write a schedule or have due dates. It is simply a hobby. And I love when I get reviews that let me know that it is worth putting in the effort. So I hope this chapter brings you all as much happiness as it did to me when I was writing it! Enjoy...**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the brilliant Criminal Minds or its characters.**

Reid kept his eyes closed, waiting for the impact that he knew was coming. He felt a massive tug and briefly wondered of he was flying through the air, but he felt too squashed for that. Reid heard Morgan yell and then felt the car meet a sudden resistance, slamming against the tree while the wheels struggled to regain control. But the pain he was expecting never came. There was no white light, no blood, and no struggle to hold in a scream. His eyes flashed open in surprise when he realised this, and noticed that the tree had hit the back of the car. He looked over to Morgan who was panting in the driver's seat next to him.

"How on earth did you steer us away from that Morgan?"

"Didn't I ever tell you? I was superman in a previous life."

"Right" Reid retorted, sarcasm dripping from his voice. They both just sat there for a little while longer, letting their shock and adrenaline fade away. Both were waiting for the other to speak, unsure of what to say next. But Reid's anxiety got the best of him and he soon broke the silence.

"Are you hurt Morgan? Or should we try to get out of this thing that used to be a car?"

Morgan glanced at him with a small smile.

"It takes more than a small crash to hurt me, pretty boy. And besides, this thing never deserved to be called a car. Pathetic little thing on wheels."

Morgan pushed himself up off his seat, undoing his seatbelt, as Reid tried to do the same. Both men struggled after the stress that the crash had put on their muscles, but managed all the same. Once they were out of the car, they could really assess how it had fared.

The front was pretty fine, with only a few scrapes of paint missing and one small dent where a stone had presumably hit. Both front doors were hanging open slightly, and one was missing a handle. The rear was far worse though. Tight up against a tree, the shape of the car had been completely lost and the paint was barely there anymore. The glass windows had shattered all over the ground and back seats, ripping the old covers. The trunk had opened and the door had been wrenched off it, its contents lost. The back wheels were also worse for wear, with one having deflated completely. Neither man had to say it, but there was no way they were driving it back.

"Alright... Do you have your phone?" 

Ten minutes later Morgan and Reid were sitting beside the bizarrely shaped car, waiting for Hotch or one of the other team members to come and pick them up. Hotch had not been happy to receive the phone call letting him know that the pair had smashed the car, and he made his feelings very clear. Hotch was not one to raise his voice very often, and usually then only under extreme pressure. The phone call was far from spoken in civil tones, and Hotch had begun to lose his voice towards the end of the 5 minute rant.

Morgan and Reid were both lost in their thoughts, the only noise filling the silence being bird sounds and the gentle breeze. Morgan was angry at himself for putting the man he considered a younger brother at risk, all for some adrenaline fuelled revenge. He understood that one of his biggest flaws was the inability to control his rage, but he found that no excuse. Sitting on the ground, looking at the wreck in front of him, Morgan was fully aware of how bad things could have gone had he not reacted exactly the same way. Images of a broken and battered Reid, surrounded by blood and laying completely vulnerable kept flashing through his mind, and as hard as he tried, he could not banish them. The reality that was so close to hitting unsettled Morgan's nerves, so he focused his thoughts back on what had made him react in that way to begin with.

The motorcyclist had really taken things too far for Morgan, the way he tried to push them off the road and then taunt him. Morgan knew that if he had been in his preferred SUV, things would have ended much worse for the motorist. He couldn't believe the nerve of that guy! And he was especially furious at the fear he had evoked in his co-worker. If he was to ever get a rematch with the motorcyclist, Morgan was going to make him feel real fear...

Reid's thoughts were slightly less ordered and less angry. He was confused and scared at what his discovery might mean. Having an eidetic memory, Reid knew that he had not been mistaken in seeing the golden eagle with diamantes on the hoon's boots. And he also knew he wasn't mistaken in who it belonged to. Richard Crehg. This man had tormented him for the past 8 months, this man had been the source of his nightmares, and most importantly, this man had terrified and stalked his sister. And if his musings were correct, it was no coincidence that Crehg had tried to run him and Morgan off the road in the same town and around the same time that his sister had been kidnapped. Reid's little sister, Crehg's ex-girlfriend. Reid's mind was a jumbled mess. He was afraid that he had discovered a link that could be so dangerous for Clary, he was scared of what the team was going to think when he told them of his connection, and he was confused as to how he should tell everyone. But most of all he was worried; worried for his sister's life.

Morgan was still deep within his thoughts, which were getting angrier every second, when he heard a muffled sob. Alarmed, Morgan shot around to look at Reid, who was sweating profusely with his head in his hands. Wasting no time, he shot up and ran the small distance to the younger agent, his earlier fears of Reid being injured clouding his thoughts.

"Reid! Are you hurt! I am calling the ambulance. Just hang in there man." Morgan frantically managed to say.

"Morgan! Put down the phone, I am fine. I just... have something I need to tell you."

Morgan looked surprised but reluctant to accept his good health.

"Are you sure? I mean, I could just call one as a precautionary –"He broke off at Reid's meaningful glare. "Alright, alright... What's wrong?" He asked softly, sensing Reid's discomfort.

"Well... It's about the case, about Clary. I know who the killer and Clary's kidnapper is, and I know why as well. And I know both the unsub and Clary personally. I think he will kill her soon" Reid said quickly, too ashamed to look Morgan in the eye as he spoke.

There was a long pause before Morgan replied.

"What are you talking about? It's alright man, you can trust me."

And so with a deep breathe and courage that he didn't know he possessed, Reid looked into Morgan's friendly eyes, ready to tell his secret.

"Let me explain."

**Thanks everyone for reading, let me know if you liked it. I have heaps planned for this story, so expect some action probably chapter after next!**


	8. Chapter 7

**A/N ****Another chapter because you guys deserve one after such a long wait before the last one. I broke my record of views in one day when I posted it, so thank you so much. I just hope that some more of you will take the time to review this chapter, because I am really hoping for 5. Thanks and enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds or it's brilliant characters :(**

"This current case we are working on means a lot more to me than it does to any of the rest of the team, because the kidnapped victim, Clary Stiles, is my half-sister. We share the same mother but her Dad had a one night thing with my Mum, and then took Clary away from her when she was only one year old. We lost contact over the years but as soon as my mum was taken away to be treated for her schizophrenia, I found her again and we have re-established our relationship over the years."

Reid said his opening confession quickly, not stopping to take a breath. He watched Morgan's eyes for signs of anger regarding what he had just said, but instead saw only surprise and compassion.

"Pretty Boy, why didn't you tell someone? We would have been able to help you, man!" Morgan said in disbelief, unsure if there was something he was missing.

"Morgan… If I had said anything to Hotch, he would have taken me off the case."

Morgan pondered this for a moment, and decided that the younger man was right. Hotch would have, because emotional connections can be dangerous and cloud judgment. He wasn't about to tell Reid that he would have agreed with Hotch's decision however, as he had a feeling that Reid would close up and not tell Morgan the rest if he did.

"Even so, it doesn't matter now. What matters is that you are here now and can help save Clary's life. You said you knew who the killer and kidnapper was, so why don't you start at the beginning?"

Reid looked reassured at Morgan's words and began to explain everything that was of importance.

"I believe the man who ran us off the road, the man that kidnapped my sister and the man who killed all those victims is the same person; Michael Crehg.

Clary called me about a year ago to tell me that she had finally found someone who she liked a lot, and they were dating. I was really happy for her because her past is shaky and somewhat frightening, and I knew she needed someone like that in her life. She told me all about him, and over the phone he seemed like a nice guy. He did all the right things; bought her flowers, watched whatever she wanted to watch, cooked her dinner and took her on romantic walks along beaches. She was happy, and so I was too. But my sister is stubborn and of a surviving nature, so she asked if I could visit her and profile Crehg, for the only reason as to see if he was as nice as he appeared to be.

So I visited her over a weekend and she introduced me to Crehg. He wasn't shy, was very self-confident, and never stopped smiling. I only talked to him the once because personalities like that make me nervous, but I profiled him as a desperate man who needed love as much as Clary. I thought he would be good for her, he held no deep anger, controlled rage easily, and honestly saw Clary as his sun in life. I didn't think he would ever hurt her intentionally, and told her so as I passed on my congratulations.

Months passed and I visited Clary at least every two or three weeks, just like I had before their relationship. But then I received a phone call from Clary only days after I had returned home again, who was in hysterics, crying and sobbing uncontrollably. She had broken up with Crehg, the first really good thing in her life, and she was distraught. I couldn't talk to her about something like that over the phone, so I left to see her as soon as I could. When I got there, she was worse than I expected, and I tried as hard as I could to help her, but no matter how many statistics and books I have read, none were helping me with what I needed the most help with. I don't know if you remember me taking some personal leave, but I did so I could be with her. She eventually told me that he had been too clingy and controlling, and when she had confronted him about it, he had gotten really angry with her. She was the one that ended it.

After I got back, it was a while before I heard from her again. When she called, I hoped it would bring happy news. But it didn't. Crehg was stalking her, leaving little eagle diamantes in her room, car, bathroom and other places she should have felt safe. And she was sure she had seen him taking photos of her when she was in the supermarket. Clary had tried to ignore it, something that was foolish of her, but when he confronted her, screaming in rage, she had decided she had to do something. That was when she had called me. I of course travelled back to see her, to comfort her and put an end to the senseless and possibly dangerous stalking. Together we began the process of getting a restraining order against him, which took some time, but a month ago, it was finally finalised. I told her he would never bother her again.

But the man that tried to run us off the road, he was wearing the same eagle diamantes on his boots as the ones that had been placed everywhere to scare Clary. The man on the motorcycle was Crehg. I should have known he would never leave her alone, and now it might be too late. Michael Crehg kidnapped Clary."

Reid noticed he had at some point bent his head, breaking his eye contact with Morgan. Looking into Morgan's horrified eyes with his own broken ones, he finished his explanation.

"I let my sister be kidnapped, because of my wrong judgment of character and poor sibling skills. If she dies, it's my fault."

Morgan looked outraged at this confession, and had many things he needed to say. But just as he was about to begin, Hotch's car came to a screeching halt only metres from the hunched over and emotional pair. Hotch's beyond furious voice rang out;

"Both of you, into the car. NOW."

**Thanks and please, please review!**


	9. Chapter 8

**A/N: ****And here I am again. People have been reviewing this story more than my others, so this is the one I am working on the most. I am really hoping for 5 reviews this chapter, but if not, enjoy anyway!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the brilliant Criminal Minds or its characters. Only Clary :)**

The ride back was long and awkward for Reid, although he hadn't said anything the entire time. Morgan had noticed his anxiety the moment Hotch had ordered them to tell him what had happened, so had taken the lead. He explained to Hotch carefully about the crash and then moved on to the lead of Michael Crehg, including Reid's relationship with Clary Stiles and his theory as to who the unsub was. For the most part, Reid looked out the window and tried to ignore the conversation, for he knew that Hotch was going to be really mad about him with-holding such vital information about the case. But certain sentences jumped out to him, like _…Reid's sister ….stalker….Crehg kidnapper…._ that made him blush furiously.

After the lengthy explanation and reasoning was over, the car was utterly silent. Morgan was worried about what the revelation might mean, but hid it easily, the only sign of his thoughts being the slight crease between his eyebrows. Hotch was silently fuming in the driver's seat, annoyed that Reid had not trusted him. Keeping his leadership duties in mind, he knew that he would have to talk to Reid, but he was not looking forward to it, and he knew he wouldn't be too harsh on him. After all, his sister had been kidnapped and her life was at risk, of course he wasn't going to be thinking too clearly.

And Reid was looking out the window again, simply running through possibilities as to why Clary had been kidnapped, and how the other murders were related. He didn't notice they had arrived at their destination until he heard Morgan open his door and jump out, slamming it behind him. Following his lead, Reid reached over to the handle before a voice stopped him.

"Just a minute Reid, do you mind staying here for a moment?"

Hotch's voice was kind and inviting, but Reid heard the order behind it. Although expressed as a question, Reid knew only one answer was going to be acceptable.

"Of course."

"Reid, you know what this is about so I am going to make it short and simple. When JJ briefed us on the murder victims and then on Clary, you reacted in a bad way. We all knew something was wrong straight away, which means that all of us were there to listen to you if you needed to talk. There is no excuse; you had plenty of time to tell us about who Clary was to you, and we would have based our investigation accordingly. Reid, you need to know that you can tell us anything, alright? I don't want any of my agents to go through something emotionally alone, if I can help it." Hotch sighed. "Reid, I really should suspend you for not telling us vital information and now you have risked Clary's life with your actions. But I understand why you did and I am willing to let it slide, just this once. Just promise me that if something like this ever happens again, you tell someone from the team, alright?"

Reid smiled awkwardly, then nodded, knowing his voice would falter if he tried to talk.

"Oh, and Reid?" Hotch waited for him to look up, "let's go catch this imbecile and find your sister."

"Thanks Ho-" Reid was broken off mid-sentence by his door opening suddenly and a hand roughly covering his mouth. He began to struggle against the person but stopped when he heard the click of a gun resting against his head.

"Now we are going to do this quickly and smoothly, without raising any suspicion, do you understand me?" A rough, male voice quickly demanded, as he stared down Hotch, who nodded. Reid tried to keep the fear off his face as the man made his next orders.

"Agent Hotchner, take out the bullets then put your gun and bullets on the back seats, spread away from each other." He waited while Hotch did as he commanded.

"Sir, you don't have to do this" Hotch tried reasoning slowly as he reached over to put the gun on the seats.

"SHUT UP! DO YOU WANT DR. REID DEAD?" He screamed. Hotch's mouth tightened as he realised that talking to this man was not going to help, he was too organised and prepared. He wanted to do whatever he was in the middle of doing. There was no talking him out of it.

"Good." The man's voice was eerily calm again. "Now, remove your second gun and give it to me. And don't try anything stupid, or else he gets shot." There was a pause as the man's steady hand grabbed the gun from Hotch's. "Here is a roll of duct tape, you will tape together Dr. Reid's hands and feet, then hand it back to me."

Reid was sitting, shocked at the situation before him. He had not expected anything like this to happen again, and all he could think of was Tobias. Tobias was happening all over again. When Hotch reached over with the tape to bind his hands and ankles, he swore he heard a whispered apology come from him, but the heavy breathing from behind him made him think that maybe he had imagined it. Reid noticed that Hotch didn't tape his ankles too tightly together, and for that he was thankful. He still couldn't speak and try to calm the man down, because his hand was still pressed tightly against his mouth.

"Good, now Agent Hotchner, slowly get out of the car and stand three steps away. If you try to signal anyone or alert people, I will shoot Dr. Reid. Do it now."

Hotch sent a comforting look to Reid before obeying the man's instructions and getting out of the car. The man took the gun away from Reid's temple, but was sure to keep it pointed towards him as he climbed over to get in the driver's seat. He looked around to tell Hotch it would be the last time he ever saw his agent when he noticed his fingers were moving behind him, not completely away from his view. Realising Hotch was texting someone behind his back, he roared in fury.

"THIS IS YOUR FAULT, AGENT HOTCHNER! IF YOU HAD OF OBEYED ME, THIS WOULD NOT HAVE HAPPENED!"

Hotch's eyes went wide as he realised the man had seen what he was doing and was going to act accordingly.

"No! Reid!" He yelled as an ear splitting shot echoed, and Reid's surprised scream rang out. The bullet had hit him in his left ankle, and it hurt badly. His frenzied, adrenaline affected mind wanted to let Hotch know that the shot wasn't fatal, he didn't need to danger his own life, he would be ok. But he knew if he simply shouted it out, he would pay later. So he quickly came up with a solution.

"You shot my ankle! Argh!" He yelled staring at the man who still had a gun trained on him.

"SHUT UP!" He screamed, then looked furiously at Hotch, whose face was a mask of horror.

"That was your fault! And the look of pain on your agent's face is the last expression you will ever see on his face! Now get out of here before I run you over!"

He sent Reid one last apologetic glance before bolting towards where the rest of the BAU were sitting, safe inside and completely oblivious to the kidnapping happening outside. He pushed the doors open, not bothering to walk inside, and yelled as loud as he could.

"ROSSI! MORGAN!"

Both agents came running out, weapons drawn, shocked at Hotch's horrified face.

"What is it Hotch? Was that a shot we heard a minute ago? Hotch, look at us man! What is it?" Morgan demanded, eyes betraying his fear.

"It's...Reid" He gasped, Morgan's eyes widening. "He's been kidnapped and shot in the ankle by the Unsub. They're gone." He said, devastated, as he looked at the empty road before him. Feelings of failure swept through him as he realised he had let Reid down, once again.

**Thanks and please review! **


	10. Chapter 9

**A/N ****Hey guys, I hope you enjoy this next instalment. I would like to thank Post U Later. You are the best reviewer ever, and it is because of you that I wrote this next chapter. I hope you all review, because it helps me to get motivated and continue writing. It also makes me unbelievably happy. Thanks!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds**

Reid was in shock, and he realised it automatically. The pain in his ankle was excruciating, he was shaking violently and couldn't think straight. Frenzied thoughts of pain and Tobias ran through his head as the car sped through back streets. He was afraid, so afraid, but he was also ashamed. Ashamed at being taken once again, ashamed of how bad an FBI agent he was. It took Reid a lot of time and many deep breaths to calm down to a point where he could formulate words in his mind. There was one in particular that he needed answered, so decided to ask his captor before he changed his mind.

"Who are you?" His voice was raspier than he expected.

The man, still wearing the mask, shot him a dark look.

"You idiot. As if you don't know who I am!" He growled.

And then the truth made its way through Reid's hazy mind. The one who kidnapped his sister after harassing her, the one who the FBI would now be after.

"Crehg." Reid spat, anger coursing through him. All he received was a small, humourless chuckle in return.

"You bastard. Who do you think you are? First you harass my sister. Couldn't you get it through your thick skull that she didn't love you anymore? Then, you kill innocent people and kidnap Clary. I hate you." The silence that followed was thick and lengthy, and Reid tried to calm down. As his mind became more used to the pain in his ankle, he was able to think clearer. Realising that angering this unsub would not end in good results, he decided to keep his mouth shut the rest of the way. To his surprise, Crehg willingly broke the silence.

"I would have left you to be, Reid, but Clary asked for you. She lives with me now, granted it is against her will, but I still want to make her happy. I killed all the people that had ever annoyed and lied to her so that she would be happier. Allan Earnshaw made selling our house difficult. He told her it would be bought for a lot more money than it was. He lied and caused stress to her, so I killed him. He was fun." Crehg smiled before continuing. "Emma O'Connor sold her too much alcohol at the pub, telling her that one more drink would not send her over the driving limit. She lied, and my dear Clary was charged with drink driving. She was oddly passive at her end… Then there was Jeffery McPherson. Selfish, greedy moron said he could get her more money than he actually could, and she was left with financial troubles. He wasn't fit to be a finance broker, let alone alive." He growled as he described the finance broker. "And last of all was Mark Piles. He tried to continuously sell my sweet angel drugs, no matter how many times she refused. He said they would help with everything, but really just caused her more stress. They all deserved to die, and there are many more who will soon be punished. After all, what comes around goes around. But you aren't here to be punished. In fact I quite like you. Sure, you have a rash temper, but hey who doesn't?" he chuckled, and then sighed. "Anyway, you are here for her happiness, as my angel seems depressed despite all the good deeds I am doing for her. I hope you will fix her ungrateful nature."

Reid sat silently, taking all the information in. He was pleasantly surprised that Crehg had given him so much information; it was now easier to judge appropriate actions. Despite his good intentions though, Reid knew he was still a killer, and by his facial expressions, also knew he had enjoyed killing. Reid also remembered to when he had shot his ankle, and the rage that festered on his face. He knew he was going to have to be very careful, because despite his seemingly caring nature, it could turn bad very easily.

The rest of the drive was spent in silence. Trying to ignore the pain, Reid stared out the window at the scenery. He especially liked watching the birds, envying their freedom and care-free life. He liked the idea of looking down at the rest of the world, knowing that the stresses down there don't affect anything in the sky. He pictured himself as a bird, soaring high and above. It was hypnotic, the dream…

Reid suddenly awoke to Crehg slamming the door on the other side of the car. Remembering instantly where he was, he sat up abruptly. Furious at himself for falling asleep while in the car with a sadistic murderer, he tried to steady himself for what was coming. His door opened suddenly, and Crehg ungracefully picked him up and started walking towards the house. Reid tried to refrain from yelling in pain as his ankle was jostled with each step.

The house he was being carried through was fairly modern and inviting. The floors were tiled, and the lights were soft and warming. The kitchen was a generous size and fitted with a dishwasher and large oven. The living room had a plasma television, and long sofas positioned around it with plump pillows. All in all, a rather comforting place.

But Crehg continued to carry Reid away from the homely front, down a long corridor and through a small door. Inside was a bedroom, with only a bed and drawer. Assuming this was where he was to be staying, Reid prepared to be let down. But Crehg kept walking. He opened up the cupboard door, which looked old and broken, to reveal a door on the ground. Reid knew instantly what it was; a basement entrance. He felt devastated when the door was opened and Crehg started down the stairs, as he had thought that maybe, despite being kidnapped, he wouldn't be forced to live in horrible conditions. After all, he was a 'guest' of Clary's. But such privilege was not going to be given to him, that much was obvious.

They finally stopped walking, and Crehg placed him unceremoniously onto the wooden floor. The basement was dark and smelt musty, but that is all that Reid could determine. Crehg's voice suddenly pierced the darkness.

"You are staying here. I will be back later." And with that he turned around, and stomped back up the stairs.

It took a few minutes before Reid's eyes adjusted to the darkness. When they had, however, he began to take in his surroundings. It looked as though there were no boxes or any junk at all laying around. The stairs he had been carried down were few, so he determined they weren't very fay beneath the house. There were also no windows, to his dismay. Looking around again he realised there was a chest of drawers and a small sink beside them. And to the left, a small bed fitted with sheets. But what he saw on the bed made him almost faint in surprise.

"Clary."

**Thanks, I hope you take the time to review! **


	11. Chapter 10

**A/N**** I am back with new and improved excitement! I am happy to continue this story, and it is my main priority (other than, you know, exams). So, please enjoy and my greatest hope is that I will reach 60 reviews soon!**

**Disclaimer: ****I do not own Criminal Minds!**

Clary glanced up, gasping in shock with her eyes wide open and glassy. Reid quickly limped over to her and embraced her small, shaking figure.

"Spencer!" She choked, holding back tears. "Why are you here? Did he hurt you?"

Reid continued hugging her tightly, relief flooding through him.

"I am fine, a little hurt, but nothing of serious concern. And you? Are you hurt? Are you ill?" Reid frantically asked her, attempting to keep his mind off the statistics threatening to burst from his lips about her health and chances of injury.

"I am fine Spencer. He hasn't hurt me." She whispered, burying her face further into the comforting embrace of her brother. She had never been so happy to see him. He nodded softly as he began to stroke her matted hair. The two siblings sat in silence together in the gloomy basement, only the quiet dripping of pipes making any sound at all. Reid couldn't bring himself to draw away from her and investigate their surroundings just yet, and Clary did not at all mind the comfort. She had been alone in the dark and dreary basement for so long, with no one but a sadistic killer in the same house, and so was deeply craving Reid's company.

After five minutes, however, Reid decided he really should assess their situation more thoroughly. He lifted his head to look around the room, and he was hardly surprised with what he saw. The room was rather small, and his earlier assessments had been correct. There was a small makeshift bathroom, with running water, and a bed pushed against the side. Windows were nowhere to be seen, and the door he had been pushed through stood defiantly above the stairs. Remembering the sound of locks on the way in, Reid determined there was no way of breaking through the door. The ground was solid concrete along with the walls, and there were no boxes or junk anywhere to be seen. A small vent was in the right hand corner of the roof, far too small for Reid to even fit his arm through. With a grim sigh, he concluded escape was impossible.

Wanting to take his mind off the hopelessness of their situation, Reid gently unravelled Clary from his torso and moved her back slightly so he could look at her eyes. What he saw made him almost cry out.

She looked severely depressed and helpless, as if she had given up on happiness and hope. He saw none of the familiar spark he had grown up to be apprehensive of, or any of her well-known courage. But he knew from her expression that she still knew how to trust, and that realisation reassured him that his little sister was not broken. He could fix her, be there for her and bring the life and spark back into her eyes once more.

"Clary" Reid said comfortingly "Do you know where we are?"

Clary stared at him for a long moment, before her eyes became glassy. She pursed her lips in an attempt to hold back tears as she shook her head softly. Her blond curls waved around at the motion and Reid ran his fingers through them in a comforting motion.

"Hush now, it will be fine." Reid said in a surprisingly courageous tone, the complete opposite of what he really felt. In truth, Reid knew the statistics of them coming out of this ordeal alive were not high but he shoved them to the back of his mind. Now was not the time to become even more worried.

After a short while, Reid sat Clary back down on the bed. The springs creaked loudly and he flinched at the unexpected noise. As he began to calm back down and the adrenaline began to wear off, the pain in his ankle flared up again, and he fought desperately to keep the pain off his face. Clary, however, was not fooled.

"What is it?" She asked, hands searching for the pain. "Are you hurt? You told me you weren't!"

Reid bit his lip. "I may have down played it a little. He shot me in the ankle."

Clary gasped in horror before sliding down to examine what little she could see in the darkness. Reid held on to any noises of discomfort, but failed when her fingers directly pressed the wound. She apologised quickly before standing up again.

"Spencer, I need to treat this." She said defiantly, and though still in pain Reid was happy to see she still possessed some of her courage. He nodded weakly as she walked over to the sink. Beneath the basin there was a small cupboard and she took out a few items, hiding them from his view. Reid was unsure if she did this on purpose.

As she sat the items down next to where she kneeled in front of his ankle, he squinted in the darkness to see what she had. The bandages, antiseptic and tweezers made him gulp in painful anticipation.

* * *

><p>"Damn it!" Morgan groaned, slamming his fist down on the desk. His eyes were full of anger and worry as he thought of Reid. They had no leads as to where Crehg was hiding them. Hell, if Reid hadn't figured out it was Crehg in the first place they wouldn't know where to start looking. The hopelessness of the situation was taking its toll on Morgan.<p>

"Morgan, calm down!" Hotch snapped, not taking his eyes off the file before him to even look at the glowering man. Hotch was beyond concerned knowing that his youngest agent may not even still be alive, and knowing that he could have stopped the whole kidnapping. And the memory of Reid being shot in the ankle because of his idiocy made him gag.

"Hotch! I can't calm down when Reid might be dead!" He yelled, advancing towards his boss. Hotch looked up angrily.

"You think I don't see that! But your anger isn't helping!"

"And neither is your lecturing!"

"Stop it!" A voice rang clearly over the bickering. Rossi stared at them, disappointment and assertive anger clear in his expression. "Reid may still be alive, and your fighting is doing nothing to save him! If he dies while you are wasting time fighting, the fault will be on your shoulders. Now please, act like the federal agents you are and start working productively! Team meeting in twenty minutes." Rossi turned around and walked back to his office, leaving the two agents staring after him in shock.

Hotch turned to face Morgan.

"I am sorry for yelling at you Morgan. Ready to get back to saving Reid once again?"

Morgan smiled humourlessly before nodding in assent. They shook hands and with the fight forgotten, returned to the files they had been previously reading through.

_Please hang on for us, Pretty Boy. _Morgan thought looking at the photo in front of him. _We need you to keep this team, this family, together._

* * *

><p>Around two hours after Reid had arrived in the basement and been reunited under painful circumstances with his sister, they were both sitting on the bed in quiet thought.<p>

Clary had removed the bullet, applied the disinfectant and wrapped his ankle as quickly and painlessly as she could, but she couldn't prevent the desperately restrained yelps that came from her brother every now and then. She comforted herself with the thought that at least it wouldn't become infected, Spencer would recover fine, and it would all be worth it in the end. But she knew deep down that the sooner he got to a hospital the better, and until then he would be in some sort of pain the entire time.

Spencer Reid, however, felt enormous relief now that the wound was bandaged. The pain was dulled and he could often ignore it if he preoccupied his mind well enough. The real struggle, he found, was preoccupying it in the least depressing and morbid way he could. It was proving very difficult. His thoughts were continually straying to possible outcomes, the next time they would see Crehg, and his team. In some memories, his team kept him more positive, but often all he could think of was how they were meant to find the two of them.

Reid decided he should try to distract Clary and himself in the happiest way possible. He was just about to bring up the story of when she placed a worm in his pasta at the ages of eight and six when his head snapped up at a terrifying noise…

…The sound of locks rattling on the door above them.

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	12. Chapter 11

**A/N ****Chapter 11 for you all! I hope you enjoy this as it took me a while (I was stuck with ideas). So people are still adding this story to their alerts and favourites (thanks!) but I would really like some reviews! Enjoy…**

**Disclaimer: ****I do not own Criminal Minds **

_Previously:_

_Reid decided he should try to distract Clary and himself in the happiest way possible. He was just about to bring up the story of when she placed a worm in his pasta at the ages of eight and six when his head snapped up at a terrifying noise…_

…_The sound of locks rattling on the door above them._

Reid acted quickly and on impulse at the sudden noise, crawling forward to shield Clary from the expected menace with his thin body. Too apprehensive to react, Clary gratefully shied away behind her brother. They both waited in their new positions, shocked into statue figures, as the door was creaked open, the sound echoing through the basement.

The brightness was un-expectantly fierce, and Reid felt his eyes water as he determinedly stared down their abductor. The heavy boots of Michael Crehg stomped down the basement stairs, the signature eagles clearly visible. Reid took a deep breath and squared his shoulders before strongly speaking to Crehg.

"Let us go." He said with assertion.

Crehg said nothing, and except for the small smile that tugged at the corners of his mouth, acted as though nothing had been spoken by the FBI agent. He walked with a strong stride over to where Clary sat huddled behind Reid, kneeling down to her level and looking into her eyes with a desperate passion. Reid glared daggers at the man, and readjusted himself as a barrier once again. His action was met by a loud noise of angry impatience, though, and before he could truly register what was happening, Crehg had pushed him over and away from Clary. Reid sat up in surprise and was horrified at what he saw.

Crehg was kissing Clary! The foul, rude, ignorant, idiotic creep was kissing his sister against her own will!

"Get off her!" Reid yelled loudly, getting to his feet quickly as he ignored the flaring pains. To his credit, Crehg looked slightly surprised at the FBI agent that was currently about to charge into him, but quickly recovered enough to move out of his way and kick him in the shins. Reid cried out as he once again came in contact with the hard and cold ground, but his goal had been achieved (however indirectly) and Crehg was now off his little sister.

Instead, he towered over Reid gently stroking a knife that was hooked on his jeans. Reid ignored the obvious threat and glared at him defiantly. But what he saw in those deep blue pits of darkness shilled Reid to the core. Crehg wanted to use the knife, he was eager to cause pain, and it was only a very strong will that would inevitable fail soon that protected Reid from the weapon.

"You will not misbehave while here as a source of comfort for my angel. If you do, I will be _forced_ to hurt you or punish you in the form of withholding food and water, or even something a little more…creative." He grinned, showing off his pearly teeth. "This is your first and last warning, so don't abuse it." Reid noted his choice of wording, shocked that Crehg believed he would have to punish him to protect Clary.

Crehg then turned to the cowering Clary and attempted to put on a caring face. He failed miserably, however, as his eyes still gleamed at the prospect of using the weapon and his smile was narrow with building fury.

"Sweet, there is food and water at the bottom of the stairs. I made tomato soup, your favourite! If you would like to, you can come up later and watch a movie with me. But for now, just rest. I love you." He said softly before stroking her hair affectionately and making his way back up the stairs.

Seeing his back turned and his guard down, Reid desperately wanted to jump up and attack the man. But his sister's presence nagged at the back of his mind, and Reid knew he couldn't do it lest he or Crehg hurt her.

Instead, Reid pushed down his violent urges that were fuelled by fury and calmly made his way back over to Clary, intent on insuring her welfare before his own.

LINE

"We need to review what we have here." Hotch calmly stated as he walked over to the pin up board. Since the earlier breakdown of the normally efficient team, everyone had been working twice as hard to fill in the wasted time. Pens were strewn out all over the tables, paper was in messy piles and photos that had been disregarded were being used as scribble paper. Everyone's eyes were droopy and half-lidded, as it was three in the morning, but they were determined to make a breakthrough before they retired to sleep for a few hours.

"So far, we have confirmed the story that Reid told Morgan. Clary is indeed his sister, and the likely captor and murderer is Michael Crehg. I have been looking into the histories of those killed by him, and each victim has been linked to Clary in some small way. Allan Earnshaw was her real-estate agent, Emma O'Connor was a bar attendant at a pub that Clary's friends have reported she regularly visited after work, Jeffery McPherson was her finance broker and Mark Piles was reported by Clary as being a drug dealer. Each of these people came in contact with Clary in the recent past, at least one time each since she started dating Crehg. At the moment, I am still figuring out possibilities as to what his M.O of writing LIAR on their shaved heads means, but there is every chance that Crehg believes that each of these people had lied to his partner in some way or another. JJ, I believe you have also found out the meaning of the eagle that Reid spotted?"

"Yes, sir. This eagle-" JJ paused as she pointed to an enlarged image of what she spoke of. "-is actually the symbol of an old bikie gang called Eagillio Bros., which was terminated four years ago after police inquests into possible drug dealership charges. The inquests came up with nothing as local police were not able to find any hard evidence; however the fact that the gang disappeared shortly after being cleared is a suspicious factor. The last of their counts show 412 members of the gang, and Garcia is currently working through this list. Michael Crehg is not listed as a member, which struck me as odd, so before I abandoned this lead I did a bit of a search on the so called 'Crehg'. His name is not in any records until four years ago, the same year that this gang was terminated."

Morgan nodded. "That would make sense. If this gang was involved in illegal activity, many of the members would have changed their names so that they didn't come up in the police databases in the future. And the fact that there are no prior records of Michael Crehg definitely rings alarm bells. They guy would have had to have a car, property, phone or _something_ in his name."

"It is also a possibility that if we are able to find out the true identity of Michael Crehg, who he was before he changed names, we can also discover where he is hiding them. It's possible that he had a small house or caravan in his old name that he had paid off. " Added Prentiss, her face thoughtful.

"Exactly. So now we need to work on narrowing down this list to get to our suspects of who Crehg actually is." Hotch ordered. Morgan took this as his cue to call Garcia, flipping open his cell phone and dialling her number through speed-dial. She answered on the second ring.

"Hey, baby girl, you got the whole team here waiting for you to work your computer magic. You ready to work wonders?" Morgan joked, but his voice cracked twice, and there was no laughter in his voice. Garcia seemingly sensed this.

"Hey, chocolate sugar, our baby Reid's gonna be fine! Now, let's 'smallify' this extensive list that our wonderful boss just emailed me."

Rossi took the lead, addressing the phone formally.

"Garcia, our unsub is male to begin with. Also, the short time period between each of the murders suggests that he has been able to move around quickly and efficiently. Narrow it down to those that lived in this immediate location."

"Check for anyone with serious road offence records, 'cos this guy was no amateur when he ran us off the darn road" Morgan added bitterly. There was silence from the team as they heard Garcia frantically typing away.

"Alright, good job my crime fighting heroes, but we still have 103 suspects."

"Excellent, now narrow that list down to people who dropped off the radar after the gang Eagillio Bros. shut down." Hotch said quickly.

"Be-a-ut-if-ul" Garcia said, exaggerated the syllables. "We now have twelve."

"Can you send us some photos? I might be able to dismiss a few." Morgan said eagerly, thankful that he had at least sighted the man.

"Sure thing, but you're gonna have to wait ten minutes or so. I'm good, but I'm not that good."

"Oh, how you disappoint me baby." Morgan joked, hanging up on the tech wiz to allow her to 'do her thing'.

"Twelve suspects. Good job team, we are closer than ever to finding this moron." Came Hotch's proud voice as he beamed at the remaining members of the tight-knit family. "Now, I know that most of you won't take this order well, but we are all going to go back and get a few hours of sleep. If we can find where they are being held soon, then we are going to need our energy in order to get them out alive. So I don't want to see any of you here until 8am. It is now 3:45am, so I will see you all in 4 hours and 15 minutes. And not a minute sooner." He said, ignoring the weak protests coming from his exhausted agents. "I will call Garcia and tell her to do the same, now all of you go."

LINE

"And do you remember that one time, when we went to Aunt Macy's and we hid her keys in the sandpit? She was so mad!" Clary laughed.

"Yeah, I do remember that. From memory she had to empty the entire box to finally find them! Hey, did you know that one tiny grain of sand has as many atoms in it as there are grains on a beach? And the tallest sandcastle was measured at 49.55 feet in 2007." Reid said, ignoring the roll of eyes he was met with.

"Yes, Spencer. That is very interesting. Thank you for enlightening me." She said sarcastically, laughing as he playfully hit her on the shoulder. She continued to shake her head fondly until the silence alerted her to her brother's thoughtful state.

"Spence?"

"Hmm?"

"What's wrong?"

Reid stared at her, wondering how much he should reveal and what might be better to keep to himself. In truth, he had been musing over what his team had to work with and the likely time frame it would take to find them. He had then been comparing this to how long he believed they would survive, and his musings hadn't pleased him.

"I was just thinking of what I told the team before Crehg got to me. They know that you are my sister, and they know that Crehg is responsible for the murders and our kidnapping. With that knowledge, they should be able to find us. But they haven't and it is at least 2 in the morning by my count. So I must be missing something, some complication that is making this take longer than I would have thought."

They were both silent.

"I was actually thinking that 'Crehg' might not be that guy's real name. He doesn't seem worried that anyone will find him, and yet this is his house. It must be listed under his name, and if it was, my team would already be here. What I am saying is that I wouldn't be surprised if Michael Crehg was an alias." Reid said softly, glancing over at his sister. She looked back at him.

"Neither would I." She whispered, heartbroken and angry that she had been so easily deceived. She never saw herself as an easy target, and it infuriated her to know that she had been so gullible. Noticing her distress, Reid took her small, calloused hand in his.

"It will be ok." He whispered, and Clary smiled.

"I know."

And with that she curled up against his chest, giving onto fatigue and promptly drifted into an uneasy sleep. Reid tried to do the same, but there were unspoken fears running through his mind.

He had held back from mentioning his greatest concern to Clary, wanting to protect her from further distress. Reid had come to a startling realisation as 'Crehg' had leaned over him, fingering his knife threateningly. The man enjoyed violence and pain, and was trying to make it 'right' through the ruse of 'protecting the love of his life'. But if it came down to it, and Crehg became suddenly angry, Reid was positive that they both would die in a slow and painful manner. Crehg was like a ticking time-bomb that needed only a reason to explode and this was what fuelled Reid's primal fear.

Reid wasn't sure if they would survive for the team to find them. The countdown to their death was already as good as going.

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	13. Chapter 12

**A/N ****Hello everyone, here is the next instalment. So I realised that this story is getting a lot of hits and reviews and I just really wanted to thank everyone. Now, while it may seem at the end of this chapter that the story is finishing soon, I promise it isn't. There is one major event that is yet to happen that I promise is like nothing else written by other fanfics authors. So sit back, relax and enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: ****No, I do not own Criminal Minds.**

"_Spencer!" A voice shouted suddenly, echoing through the thick, grey mist that swirled around him. He spun around, trying desperately to find her, but all he saw was threatening shadows closing in on him. They gathered around his feet, thickening until his shoes were no longer visible, before gradually rising up his body in a swirling pattern. _

"_Spencer!" The voice came again, louder and more piercing than before. Reid tried to cry out in response to the voice, but all he managed was a strangled sob as the icy shadow threatened to consume his middle. He thrashed against the restraint, sobbing freely as the claustrophobia squeezed through his body. The shadow had reached his chest now, and as it tightened around him, the breath was expunged from his frantic lungs. He cried out in pitiful desperation again, trying to locate a source of help, anyone who could save him._

"_Spencer!" He whipped around as the voice became louder and finally saw an image he remembered._

"_Clary" He whispered as her face flashed before him, strained with pain and sorrow. She reached out to him, he fingers coming so close to his face before her eyes widened in alarm._

"_Clary!" Reid yelled loudly, as the darkening shadow reached his face, twisting around him in an elegant, yet fatal dance._

* * *

><p>Reid sat against the wall, sweating and shaking against his sister's sleeping frame. He had tears running down his face from the shock and reality of the nightmare he had been haunted with, and no matter how hard he tried, Reid could not forget the feeling of losing his sister.<p>

It had felt so real.

And yet, as he looked down at Clary, Reid realised that while it had not yet happened, Clary was very likely to be taken from him if they remained in their current location. While it may not be in the form of his shadowed nightmare, Crehg posed a very large threat to the siblings and it was with a sinking heart that Reid admitted that survival of the next day would not be possible in this basement. Crehg was far too angry, and had minimal control over his deepest desires and actions. Reid therefore came to a dangerous conclusion; Reid and Clary would have to escape by their own means.

* * *

><p>"What have you got for me baby girl?" Morgan asked.<p>

The entire team was seated again at their table, waiting anxiously and searching through every last detail that could be found. Not much had changed since their position 5 hours earlier, except that most were looking newly refreshed. The only exception to this statement was Morgan, who had not shut his eyes once the entire break.

"I have the twelve photos for you, enlarged for easier viewing and being sent to your tablets right about…now."

And true to her word, several rings sounded out alerting the team of a new message.

"Thanks baby-girl" He said, hanging up and bringing onto the screen twelve images.

"Suspects 1, 2 and 8 are definitely not our guy. They are too short for the man I saw. It can't be suspect 9 either; he has very distinctive tattoos that I would remember. Suspects 4 and 5 are no-go's, wrong body shape." Morgan paused.

"Morgan?" Prentiss tentatively asked after 30 seconds of silence.

"I think it's him, number 7. Jason Marks." He replied quietly.

"Are you sure Morgan?" Hotch demanded.

"Yes. I'm sure. Jason Marks is our guy!" He said, looking up at the team with glee in his eyes.

"Let's go catch this SOB…" Rossi muttered, as he grabbed his jacket and stormed out of the office, the rest of the team following suite.

"Garcia? Yeah, we got him. Can you send us the details of Jason Marks…"

* * *

><p>"Spencer, I'm scared." Clary admitted, completely gone past the point of caring anymore.<p>

"I know you are. But you don't have to be any longer." Reid whispered, earning an apprehensive confused look from his sister, who was still huddled into his side.

"What-" But she was broken off by the sound of Crehg coming down towards the basement, his heavy footsteps foreboding in the darkness.

"Shhh," Reid warned.

Less than ten seconds later, the door was flung open, rebounding on the wall as Crehg came down. Reid swallowed his fear at the sight of a knife that was held in his hands and ignored the stubborn voice inside his head telling him to scream or run or cry.

He couldn't be weak, not at this moment.

And so it was with a heavy heart that he ignored Clary's protests as he untangled her grip on him, standing up to go and stand by the forgotten bed. He purposefully avoided her gaze, knowing the fear she would see there, instead choosing to stare straight into Crehg's.

"She is all yours," He spat, before turning his gaze to the wall in an attempt to hide his tears "I am done protecting her."

Reid fought the urge to turn back around when he heard Clary whimper in fright.

He gritted his teeth as Crehg taunted her.

And he scraped his skin as a frightened sob left her lips.

But as he heard her scream loudly in fear, Reid whipped back around with last night's dinner plate in hand, and quickly made his way to Crehg in fury. In a sudden burst of adrenaline-fueled strength, he slammed the plate down on the hateful man's head, revelling in the groan of pain he heard as Crehg slumped to the ground. The dreadful silence was only broken by heavy breathing, although the source was questionable, and quiet gasps of shock. The plate that had been used as a weapon was in shards around Reid's feet, and the fatigue mixed with relief flowing through his rigid body could have led him into a trance had he not heard that one sound; Clary.

"Spencer?"

"Spencer?"

"Please answer me!" She finally begged, her voice cracking as she allowed a fearful sob to escape her body. "You can't leave me here alone."

His vacant eyes flashed towards her, and in that second, she saw so many emotions at once that she was awed one person could feel so much. Reid bent forwards, capturing her in a tight hug before she could protest.

Not that she ever would.

"I am so sorry Clary. You have no idea how hard it was for me to do that and let that bastard hurt you. But I had to. He was so angry, and I knew that he wouldn't question my compliance in that state. It was the only way I could save us; we would have died. Please, please forgive me!"

"Spencer," She calmed him, patting his back in soothing circles. "It's ok; you were never blamed in my eyes. I know you would never let anyone hurt me. But boy, do you have some hidden strength hidden in those lanky twigs!" She giggled, attempting to lighten the depressive air. In truth, his actions had both frightened her and impressed her but she was not about to admit so in his fragile state.

Reid smiled slightly, happy to see the sarcastic nature of his sister still existent. He had been worried how all of this would affect her, but her inner person had not been harmed.

"Clary, we need to get out of here. I don't know how long he is going to stay down, and if we aren't gone by the time he awakens…the chances of us making it out with our cherished lives are not favourable."

"Oh Spencer Reid, only you could make 'we need to escape or we'll die' sound so…Einstein-worthy."

* * *

><p>The pair crept up the stairs and out of the open basement door quickly, remaining quiet despite there being no need for their silence. It was something about the danger of the situation and the high levels of adrenaline being produced that made them move quietly, with Reid in front checking for any unknown dangers. They came across no obstacles as they walked through the living room, with their dishevelled clothes and Reid's limp being the only signs that the two were not merely there for a dinner party. It was only when they reached the front door that Reid noticed the alarm system attached to it and managed to stop his eager sister from opening the door and setting off whatever noise may lay in wait. On one hand, Reid wasn't sure it would matter if the alarm went off considering their escape from the house wasn't a sneaky one. But on the other hand, such an ear-piercing noise could assist in waking up their kidnapper who still lay beneath them. So Reid decided to play it safe.<p>

"This isn't a very complex system. In fact, all that's needed to disarm it is a card. It should look similar to a credit card, but slightly thicker," Reid rattled with a sinking feeling in his chest. There was a high possibility that the card was down on Crehg's person, tucked away in a pocket where he would have easy access. And if this was the case, then Reid would have to retrieve it and that thought made his entire being shudder.

"Over there," whispered Clary, pointing to a wallet that had obviously been put down in a hurry. Beside it sat a card similar to what Reid had described. She quickly grabbed it and handed it over to her brother, who looked impressed at her vision and perception.

"Right. Ok. This is it," he said, running the card through the basic system.

And with that action sounded a small noise granting permission to open the door. Clary grabbed her brother's hand like a small child and dragged him out onto the front garden; to their freedom.

* * *

><p>'3, 2, 1 go' Morgan signed with is free hand, before breaking down the door loudly and leading the team into the house purposefully. He was slightly surprised that the alarm visible hadn't gone off, but his mind was too preoccupied to overthink that fact. JJ filed behind him as the rest of the team broke off into separate areas of the house.<p>

They took the living room, which was perfectly neat and tidy. A television sat in the corner, which hardly looked used, and there was no sign of personal items anywhere.

"Clear!" Rossi yelled, passing by Morgan and JJ as he headed towards where he believed the basement to be. Signing for JJ and Morgan to follow, the three surrounded the door.

"Ready?" JJ asked, bracing herself for what she might find below. While they had adamantly tried to keep their minds from wondering to the bad possibilities, JJ had never forgotten what might be happening to her injured friend below, and she wasn't sure if she wanted to face that fact.

Morgan nodded and opened the trap door, seemingly oblivious to JJ's internal struggle. The light from his torch shone down, clearly revealing a body on the ground. Felling his heart rise into his throat, Morgan quickly hurried down the stairs, ignoring safety protocol, with his only thought being that the man on the ground was Reid.

It wasn't. It was 'Crehg', now known to be Jason Marks.

And while he immediately felt relief that his genius wasn't down here, Morgan realised what the injured man before him meant.

Reid had attacked him. Reid had disarmed the alarm upstairs. Reid and Clary were not here.

They had escaped.

"Dammit!" his voice echoed angrily, before being promptly followed by a howl of rage as he stormed out on his team who were reviving and arresting Jason Marks.

"Reid! Where the heck are you?" he yelled in frustration before breaking down to his knees and cradling his head in his hands.


End file.
